1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a battery terminal clamp mounted to the post of a battery mounted in a motor vehicle, and relates particularly to a battery terminal clamp wherein the tightening position of the bolt is placed above the terminal main body, and the battery terminal clamp is firmly clamped to the battery post by tightening said bolt from the horizontal direction.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A conventional battery terminal clamp of this type is shown in FIG. 4. A ring-shaped post fitting member 3a is fit over the battery post projecting from the battery, and right and left tightening members 3c are provided continuous to the free ends of the post fitting member 3a and projecting horizontally therefrom. A bolt 4 is passed horizontally through the right and left tightening members 3c, and is tightened using an impact wrench or similar tool from the side (horizontal direction) to close the tightening members 3c and thus clamp the post fitting member 3a to the battery post.
A modified battery terminal clamp of this type has been proposed (Japanese Utility Model Publication examined No. 4-7567) and is shown in FIG. 5. With this battery terminal clamp, a base member 3b and tightening member 3c are provided in mutual opposition and at an angle to the axis of the post fitting member 3a of the terminal 3. A bolt 4 is placed in the bolt holes provided in the base member 3b and tightening member 3c, and thus at an angle to the axis of the post fitting member 3a, and a nut 6 is tightened onto the bolt 4 by means of an impact wrench 5 held at an angle above the terminal 3 assembly to clamp the post fitting member 3a to the battery post.
Space inside the engine room of most recent vehicles, however, is limited due to the large number of engine room components. This makes it difficult to adequately tighten the terminal fitting by applying a horizontal force from a point near the battery top with a battery terminal as shown in FIG. 4 because of interference between other engine room components and the impact wrench. It is even possible for the impact wrench to contact the negative terminal while tightening the positive terminal fitting, causing an electrical short.
With a conventional battery terminal clamp as shown in FIG. 5, the base member 3b and tightening member 3c are formed by twisting them to an angle relative to the axial direction of the post fitting member 3a so that the nut 6 can be tightened from a position above and at an angle to the terminal 3. However, because the tightening direction of the base member 3b and tightening member 3c formed by twisting to an angle and the direction in which the post fitting member 3a is clamped to the outside circumference of the battery post differ, sufficient tightening force cannot be applied in the clamping direction of the post fitting member 3a.